Some of the initiatives backed by President Bush and the nation鈥檚 governors at their education summit late last month are likely to run into opposition on Capitol Hill, lawmakers and aides said in interviews last week.
In a statement issued Sept. 28 at the close of the historic meeting in Charlottesville, Va., the participants agreed to set national performance goals for education by early 1990 and to launch a state-by-state effort to 鈥渞estructure鈥� the nation鈥檚 schools.
The statement, drafted by the Administration and negotiated by top White House officials and three key governors, also called for more flexibility in federal and state education regulations and for a national 鈥渞eport card鈥� to measure the performance of individual states and schools.
It is the latter two initiatives that require Congressional cooperation--a situation that could weaken their chances for approval, observers said last week.
Giving schools more leeway in their use of federal funds in exchange for a commitment to meet performance standards was one of the summit鈥檚 main themes.
Such an initiative, which would require legislation, could allow schools to merge funds from different programs, to spend federal money on broad school-improvement measures rather than on 鈥減ull-out鈥� programs for specific students, or to use equipment purchased with federal funds for a variety of purposes.
The flexibility idea, raised earlier this year in a report by the National Center on Education and the Economy, was endorsed by the President in April, but it has been controversial in the Congress. (See 澳门跑狗论坛, April 19, 1989.)
In May, Representative Peter P. Smith, Republican of Vermont, persuaded leaders of the House Education and Labor Committee to hold a hearing on the notion.
Education advocates generally supported the idea of loosening restrictions on the use of federal aid. But a civil-rights advocate and the committee鈥檚 chairman, Representative Augustus F. Hawkins, expressed reservations. (See 澳门跑狗论坛, May 24, 1989.)
The California Democrat was unavailable for comment last week, but his top education aide said Mr. Hawkins remains concerned about the impact of a 鈥渇lexibility鈥� initiative on the disadvantaged students many federal education programs are designed to aid.
鈥淭hose federal programs didn鈥檛 come out of the sky; they came about because there were particular problems,鈥� said John F. Jennings, counsel for the Education and Labor Committee. 鈥淲e鈥檙e afraid that if you leave it up to local school districts, we鈥檒l end up where we were 20 years ago with poor children and handicapped children being ignored.鈥�
Rough Sledding Predicted
Mr. Jennings also said supporters of the flexibility concept must specify which regulations they want to relax and why, a comment that was echoed by other Congressional aides.
Senate aides of both parties said lawmakers had not yet begun to consider the flexibility proposal, but they predicted that a measure designed to reduce the government鈥檚 ability to account for its expenditures would face rough sledding.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a concern that flexibility isn鈥檛 always accompanied by accountability,鈥� said David Evans, staff director of the Senate鈥檚 education subcommittee. 鈥淚 think, over all in Congress, there鈥檚 more support for Chapter 1 [compensatory-education aid] than Chapter 2 [block grants], and one reason is that, with Chapter 1, you know where the money鈥檚 going and how it鈥檚 spent.鈥�
But Mr. Smith and Representative William F. Goodling, the ranking Republican on the education and labor panel, were more optimistic about the chances of enacting flexibility legislation.
鈥淚 think the summit substantially improved the climate for changing national federal policy in regard to schools,鈥� Mr. Smith said last week. 鈥淭he belief among governors is that you can鈥檛 get better performance unless you give schools and the people who work in schools more control over what they do.鈥�
Representative Smith said a second hearing on loosening federal restrictions will be scheduled next month to give educators an opportunity to discuss their reasons for wanting more flexibility.
鈥淭he summit may encourage some members who are thinking the other way to take another look,鈥� Mr. Goodling said, adding that he does not think Mr. Hawkins鈥檚 opposition is intractable.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an idea he has to examine very carefully to ensure that it鈥檚 not an attempt to undo what he鈥檚 been working hard for a long time to do,鈥� Mr. Goodling said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think his feet are set in cement.鈥�
Marc S. Tucker, executive director of the National Center on Education and the Economy, said proponents must be careful not to back deregulation, which smacks of 鈥淩ea8gan-era block grants,鈥� but 鈥渁 new kind of regulation.鈥�
鈥淧eople on the Hill are ready for that kind of discussion, though not without controversy,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey are committed to making things work, especially for poor kids, and are as frustrated as anyone else.鈥�
鈥楻eport Card鈥� Draws Skepticism
Lawmakers and their aides were virtually unanimous last week in predicting that any move to establish a national report card that would allow comparisons among states and schools would face stiff opposition.
They noted that a law authorizing a trial state-level analysis by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, the likely vehicle for such a 鈥渞eport card,鈥� was enacted last year after a long battle in which representatives from poor states and districts bitterly opposed the idea.
鈥淎 ranking means somebody has to come out on the bottom, and nobody wants to be on the bottom,鈥� Mr. Evans noted.
Mr. Goodling said he might support assessments that rated states鈥� and schools鈥� performance from year to year, but only if no comparisons could be made among them.
鈥淲hen you start comparing district to district, it鈥檚 totally unfair--apples and oranges,鈥� Mr. Goodling said.
When he was an educator before his election to the Congress, Mr. Goodling said, Pennsylvania tried district-level rankings and abolished them under a hail of criticism.
鈥淲hat a great discovery it was that [the wealthiest districts] were number one,鈥� he said sarcastically.
鈥楢 Faddish Idea?鈥�
However, some Congressional observers said a national climate in favor of stricter performance standards could prompt lawmakers to go along with the assessment proposal.
鈥淩eport cards scanned by Big Brother don鈥檛 seem to achieve much,鈥� Representative Pat Williams said, calling it 鈥渁 faddish idea.鈥�
鈥淏ut in the mood this Congress is in, they could fall for such a fad,鈥� said the Montana Democrat, a former teacher who is chairman of the postsecondary-education subcommittee.
Another part of the summit agreement that may spark spirited debate on Capitol Hill is its call for more federal support for early-childhood education programs, particularly Head Start, and for measures to increase 鈥渁ccess鈥� to education.
The statement did not specifically promise increased federal funding this year, but Democrats wasted no time in using it against Mr. Bush. They contended that, in light of his summit action, he would be a hypocrite to veto a child-care measure passed by the House last week. (See related story, page 23.)
Governors Take Action
Governors, meanwhile, began discussing state-level proposals last week--and endeavored to reap political benefit from their meeting with the President.
Gov. Tommy G. Thompson of Wisconsin and Gov. Cecil D. Andrus of Idaho told reporters, for example, that they would name committees to study their states鈥� education needs.
In South Dakota, Gov. George S. Mickelson said he would organize a series of meetings across his state to seek input from parents and educators. Gov. Ray Mabus of Mississippi said he started receiving that input at 鈥渢own meetings鈥� he began before the summit.
And Gov. Neil Goldschmidt of Oregon said he would travel throughout his state to solicit ideas and appoint committees to do the same.
Several governors returned from the summit to reveal specific reforms they planned to propose. Mr. Thompson said he favors a longer school year, Mr. Goldschmidt promised a proposal for changes in school finance, and Gov. Terry E. Branstad of Iowa said he would call for an alternative route to teacher certification.
Governors also seized the opportunity both in Charlottesville and back home to point with pride to reforms already under way in their states, highlighting areas the summit agreement singled out for goal-setting.
Gov. Wallace Wilkinson of Kentucky, for example, said his call for the establishment of 鈥渂enchmark鈥� schools freed from the burden of state regulation 鈥渋s now the national agenda,鈥� a remark echoed by several of his colleagues in praise of their states.
Some governors boasted of how impressed their colleagues were with some of their state initiatives.
鈥淚t was really a hot item down there,鈥� Gov. Edward D. DiPrete of Rhode Island said of his state鈥檚 鈥渃hildren鈥檚 crusade for higher education,鈥� for instance.
The program, set to begin in 1991, is designed to guarantee a college or trade-school education to every third-grader who adheres to its achievement guidelines.
Public Meetings Considered
Representatives of the Bush Administration and the National Governors鈥� Association said last week that negotiations have not yet begun in earnest on how to establish the national goals promised at the summit.
But, they added, public meetings or hearings of some type are likely to be a part of the plan.
The statement released at the summit鈥檚 close calls for a joint effort by 鈥渢he President鈥檚 designees鈥� and the nga task force on education to establish the goals in a process that includes wide consultation.
Michael Cohen, an education-policy analyst for the nga, said he envisions a series of national, regional, and state meetings as part of the goal-setting process.
鈥淣o one ever thought that the goals would begin and end at the national level,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e will have to have a comparable process at the state and local level.鈥�
Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill, meanwhile, said last week that they would push for a national meeting that would include educators and other 鈥渟takeholders.鈥�
The Congress appropriated funds for such a meeting in 1984, but the Reagan Administration declined to hold it.
